Why I quit - Kapofi

High-spirited minister of defence Frans Kapofi, in an exclusive interview with Namibian Sun at his office yesterday, said he was not desperate to become Swapo vice-president (VP) “at all costs” amid murmurs of discontent around the so-called Helmut Amendments.To the shock of many, he quit the race yesterday, five days after he sailed through the nominations at the Swapo central committee meeting held last Saturday.His resignation from the race – contained in a letter to President Hage Geingob and which was read to the Swapo politburo yesterday – sent the party into a frenzy.In his office on the second floor of the ministry’s headquarters at around lunchtime yesterday, Kapofi switched off the TV, which showed images of Queen Elizabeth’s casket, to address the elephant in the room.“I’ve been thinking hard and my mind is made up,” he said jovially.As the conversation started, a member of his campaign team called to update him on the printing of his campaign materials.“Please don’t proceed with that for now,” the minister said on the phone, as he turned his attention to this journalist.He continued: “You see, several things make me uncomfortable and I discussed this with my wife and kids who fully concurred with me.“First, I feel we are too many VP candidates. We are four candidates for that position and three of us are from the same region and speak the same dialect. I’m not saying people will be voted along regional and tribal lines, but the composition doesn’t represent the diversity of our country,” a grinning Kapofi added.He was a candidate along with fellow Ohangwena politicians Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah and Pohamba Shifeta, while Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, who hails from the Omusati Region, is also vying for the same position.‘Numbers don’t lie’“Among those of us who went through the voting process and got successful nomination, I had the least votes. That also played a part in my decision.“Numbers don’t lie. If I had the same number of votes but we were only two or at least three candidates, I would have still continued in the race. I am not doubting myself,” he said.“I have a military, political and technocratic background spanning many years since I was 22. So, I have something solid to offer, but I am not desperate to win at all costs. It’s not in my nature,” the 69-year-old former secretary to Cabinet and executive director in various miniseries said.The second reason cited by Kapofi for quitting the race is that he does not want to be caught up in the controversy of the Helmut Amendments, which required VP candidates to have served 10 consecutive years in the party’s central committee.He said: “I have strong support within Swapo, that’s why I was successfully nominated and voted in absentia. I wasn’t in the meeting that voted me but people still had confidence in my leadership – so I fancied myself winning the race if I was interested.“My interpretation of the Helmut Amendments is that I qualified to contest, but others had different interpretations. So, I don’t want to be seen as a guy who was bulldozed into the race by flouting the rules.”During Swapo’s war for independence, Kapofi became political commissar of the army – the fourth highest rank in the military.“The political commissar was automatically a member of central committee and politburo at the time. I just never actively took up the position, but technically I was a member,” he clarified.‘I am sorry’Kapofi thanked those who rallied behind him and thanked Geingob for his support. It has been said that the head of state preferred Kapofi as his successor, but the minister was coy on this when asked yesterday.“I am sorry to my comrades who vested their faith in me by voting for me. I can contribute to Swapo and the country in my own other ways.”Kapofi, leader of Swapo leaders assigned to Oshikoto, remains in the race for central committee after that region chose him as one of its delegates.“I am definitely in the race for central committee. I have a traditional homestead in Oshikoto, so I fully qualify to be nominated from there.“Also, if I’m good enough to serve Oshikoto as part of leaders assigned, I’m also good to be delegated from there.”

Why I quit - Kapofi

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-15

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Why I quit - Kapofi

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Namibian Sun 2026-09-15

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